Even
though the earth has begun to freeze and shovels have replaced
furniture I have already begun planning next years garden. It is
what gardeners do when the landscape becomes a montage of browns and
black.
Next
year I'll forgo the traditional Fushia Foray and concentrate on
begonia's for the hanging pots. Nursery selection was a huge
disappointment and it was a shame because growing conditions, cool
and wet, could not have been better. The ones I did find, mostly the
lovely Angel Earrings, were heavy feeders needing to be fertilized
weekly or they became pots of greenery. That won't do as the garden
is planted with every shade of green one can imagine and I want
colour on the patio. Cascading colours of blooms so thick hummers
will lick their lips in delight at the feast.
I did
find one shocking begonia that was hung on the veranda. Blood Red I
believe was the name and it trailed a good 4' down, covered in blooms
all summer. The flower wasn't a deep red but the backs of the
serrated leaves were. I cut it back and now sits in the basement
with thoughts of reviving it come spring. Besides that I had the
reliable Dragons Wings and it was amazing! Planted in the box below
the above Blood Red it grew 3' tall without support and at least that
wide. Covered in bright red blooms all summer they were perfect
against the brilliant green leaves. I'm not sure how it would do
hanging but I know I will fill the boxes with them. Colour baby, me
needs colour!
I need
more form, especially during winter, and with the canopy of trees
blocking out the sun I' shall search for more yews and Japanese
maples. Presently I have two types of yew, dense and hicks. The
dense's multitude of shades are wonderful and after two years planted
by The Pond it is healthy and yes, dense. The hicks were, ummm, end
of sale finds, and are growing slowly but add that wanted, nae,
needed green when the garden is covered in 3' of white shite. As
for the Japanese maples, they became feed for Pooka last winter who
dined til only trunks were left. At least he enjoyed them.
Another
task awaiting me is to bring the bed across The Pond closer. It
became more of a planting ground than anything. The stones will be
pulled up, ground dug and filled with compost and specimens
replanted. I'll probably leave the background row of princes feather
there as it does well and relay the stones between it and the new
bed. Presently The Pond is framed with flagstone then a bed of
lemon penny wort. The chartreuse colour makes it pop, is weed free
and the tendrils wind their way across stones and into the water
providing froggies with a life line when they can't hop out without
exhausting themselves. I know, I know. It has been said to me on
more than a few occasions, “seriously Cheryl?” YES seriously,
that tis me nature and it is the least I can do for them. Then again
I ponder, I provide a safe home, food and all the water they need.
Hhmmm...
I will
become more diligent in bug control. I never have and never will use
chemicals what fingers and a good soap can accomplish. The penny
wort was eaten by worms for the first time. I spent hours picking
the green/blue worms off the plants dropping them into a soap filled
container. This was after I finally realized what was happening.
Once cleared I breathed a sigh of relief only to find it covered
again in 3 weeks time. AHA! The buggers ate well and laid eggs.
There is something comforting picking evil creatures off plants with
the cry of “die ye bastards, die!” Payback is sweet. The
plants never recovered but I have faith they will rise again next
spring.
Other
major problems were slugs and snails due to the wet weather. Never
in me life had I seen so many, or the garden decimated as it was, by
those slithery creatures. It seemed they chose the new arrivals to
kill first then moved on to the more established plants. Hosta's
were their primary food source causing me to shout out NOOOOOOOOO on
more than one occasion. It wasn't until I was relaxing by The Pond
that I put 2 + 2 together after seeing them gathering on the shore.
The scene from Fantasia where the brooms and buckets kept multiplying
played in me mind when one became two and two became 4. Yikes! It
was if bells had rung and they were called for dinner. Slowly they
made their way onto the stones then off into the garden. I have
learned.
Reflecting
it was a good year for the garden, though mostly in spring and early
summer. The goats beard grew 5' high, hellebores finally bloomed,
fireflies were abundant, and colourful birds found refuge. That's
all a gardener can ask for. An Eden for themselves and creatures who
find a home.
